


Something better

by mckvch (RaiseYourVoice)



Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Camping, Crush at First Sight, First Meetings, Flirting, M/M, Pick-Up Lines, Shy Alec Lightwood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-13
Updated: 2018-05-13
Packaged: 2019-05-06 03:50:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14633499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RaiseYourVoice/pseuds/mckvch
Summary: Magnus clenched his jaw but didn’t comment on it. He knew Ragnor was right and he also knew that Raphael had a hand in planning this interventional get-away. His friends were worried about him and Magnus knew he at least had to try to finally get his shit together—if not for himself, then for his beloved friends.How mosquito bites and lack of proper sanitary installations would help him do so...Magnus couldn’t fathom.





	Something better

“Camping is the worst idea you could have come up with,” Magnus complained while swatting away a mosquito buzzing around his head, glaring at the little bloodsucker with a disgusted expression before focusing his attention back on Ragnor. His oldest friend seemed thoroughly amused and not guilty about dragging Magnus to the filthy forest at all. Not that Magnus had actually expected Ragnor to feel bad about torturing him like this.

“Would you stop being so exhaustingly dramatic for at least once?” Ragnor asked with a rather fond eye roll, tapping his fingers against the travel mug filled with tea that was standing on the small camping table in from of him.

“Have you met me?” Magnus shot back and cursed the amusement in his voice that absolutely ruined his, admittedly childish, protests in a matter of seconds. The way the corner of Ragnor’s mouth twitched told him the other thought the exact same.

“I believe so and that’s the exact reason we’re here. You needed to get away from the city and being a spoilt brat for once, appreciate the small things for once.”

“I’m certainly not going to appreciate all the bugs and mosquitos crawling around here,” Magnus huffed and scrunched up his nose, twirling a strand of his magenta-streaked hair around his bejewelled index finger, the just as magenta nail polish sparkling in the sunlight at the movement.

“You know that’s not what I meant anyway,” his friend replied with another roll of his eyes and sipped his tea, like a true Englishman. For Ragnor, it was always teatime and Magnus would probably never understand how someone survived without coffee because he couldn’t start into the day without a good cup of caffeine-infused bean juice.

Magnus only hummed noncommittally and kept on twirling the strand around his finger in a bored manner. Surely he would manage to survive the wilderness for one week, even though it wouldn’t be pleasurable at all but if his dear friend insisted…

“You’ve been drowning yourself in work, booze and pointless one night stands ever since _her_ ,” Ragnor said after a moment of silence, his voice suddenly impossibly soft and eyes fixed on the lake that was shimmering between the trees. “It’s been almost a year. I know she hurt you but you need to stop beating yourself up over this. That woman poisoned you, manipulated you, and you have to stop blaming yourself for that. The only mistake you made was giving her your heart to break, the rest is her doing.”

Magnus clenched his jaw but didn’t comment on it. He knew Ragnor was right and he also knew that Raphael had a hand in planning this interventional get-away. His friends were worried about him and Magnus knew he at least had to try to finally get his shit together—if not for himself, then for his beloved friends.

How mosquito bites and lack of proper sanitary installations would help him do so...Magnus couldn’t fathom.

*******

“A romantic walk along the lake, my dear Ragnor, are you trying to woo me?” Magnus joked, hand over his heart in a mock-touched gesture before his lips curled into a teasing grin at his friend’s long-suffering sigh.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing, since I’ve left my dignity in New York,” the other deadpanned with an unimpressed stare while sidestepping a big branch that was blocking part of the path.

Magnus huffed and knocked his shoulder against Ragnor’s before resuming his way along the earthy path that wound around the admittedly beautiful lake. Even though Magnus was a spoilt city boy and he certainly missed the luxury of his normal life, he could appreciate the beauty of nature and the calm of being away from constant traffic, the fresh air cleaning his lungs with every breath.

They followed the path until it opened up to the side of the lake and Magnus was surprised to see a few tents set up in the grass, not having expected other people to have found their way to this secluded area since the proper camping ground was a few miles east of here.

Magnus glanced around and then spotted a couple of people currently swimming in the lake, wondering how he had missed them. It seemed like it was a small group of teenagers or maybe they had just reached their early twenties, it was hard to tell from afar, and Magnus could basically feel Ragnor’s sigh of annoyance.

“Come on, let’s head back,” Ragnor suggested and he had turned around already, taking the path back to their own little camp.

Magnus was about to follow suit but stopped dead in his tracks when one boy of the small group was leaving the lake, emerging from the probably cool water and exposing Magnus to the most delicious sight he had seen in a very long time—maybe ever.

This young man was incredibly well-build—broad shoulders, narrow hips, fine-shaped abs, a chiselled jaw covered with a hint of stubble and legs for days. Not to forget an unruly mop of black curls that was currently mussed up even more by slender fingers carding through them and when the young man noticed him, pink lips parting in surprise and hazel eyes widening, Magnus felt like his knees might just give in.

Not even Camille had managed to make him react this strongly and that woman had been his whole world once, the _love of his life_ , until she had decided to rip his heart to pieces and stamp on it for good measure.

“Magnus?”

He blinked, realising that he probably shouldn’t be creepily staring at this devastatingly gorgeous stranger and tilted his head to drag his gaze away and to a very unimpressed Ragnor.

“I would say ‘stop undressing random people with your eyes’ but there’s not really much to undress, to begin with,” his friend commented and drew a snort of amusement from Magnus’ throat. He knew he was way too obvious when someone caught his attention and neither of his friends never failed to point it out to him.

“It’s quite hard not to, though,” Magnus replies with a sigh and his eyes flickered back to the young man that was still standing there with a deer in headlights expression, water running down his stunning body and tantalising Magnus. Would it be terribly strange to walk up to a stranger, fall to his knees and lick the droplets of water from those delicious abs? Probably…

“This is not what I had in mind when I brought you here for some distraction,” Ragnor sighed and briefly looked at this young man, frowning like he was trying what Magnus saw in the guy but clearly failing.

“Well, you brought me here to appreciate the beauty of nature and what’s more beautiful and natural than _this body_ ,” Magnus replied with a wicked grin and before Ragnor could do anything more than hiss his name in warning, he already turned around fully and sauntered up to this incredible specimen of their kind.

“I’m sorry, were you talking to me?” Magnus asked the handsome stranger whose eyebrows now drew together in obvious confusion and even though all that left his lips after a moment of silence was a simple “No?”, Magnus could already tell that the young man had a wonderfully deep voice. He suddenly felt the need to get this guy to say his name with that smooth voice of his.

“Well then, please start,” he added with a cheeky smile that grew a little wider in delight at the small huff of laughter his admittedly silly pick up line managed to draw from tall dark and handsome.

“I always wondered if these lines actually work for anybody,” the young man commented while the slightest hint of pink bloomed high on his wonderful cheekbones, causing Magnus’ heart to make a pleased little flip against his ribs.

“And the verdict is—?” Magnus inquired and he thought it would be harder to prevent his eyes from travelling up and down the other’s body when he was up close but the young man’s sparkling hazel eyes, framed by impossibly thick and long dark lashes, did a pretty amazing job at keeping Magnus’ gaze captive.

“I’m not sure yet but I’m not inclined to run for the hills just yet,” he replied and Magnus told himself that it would be bad mannerism to grab the other’s face and kiss him stupid without at least asking his name first.

“That might be due to the lack of hills in the area,” Magnus pointed out and felt his lips stretch into an even brighter smile when the young man chuckled, rolling his pretty eyes.

“I could offer another line if that would help you decide if it works or not,” he then offered with a playful little wink and the way the other man looked at him, cheeks a soft pink, were at least a dead giveaway that this incredibly handsome guy wasn’t lost to the heteros. _Thank heavens_. If this boy was straight, Magnus would trash his gaydar and go live the rest of his life in these mosquito-swarmed woods!

Before the other was able to reply, a blond guy from his group called out from the lake. “Alec, what is taking you so long?!”

“Just a sec!” The young man called back and Magnus smiled at the fact that Alec asked his friends to wait instead of heading back right away.

“Alec, huh? Short for Alexander, I presume?” Magnus wondered if he only imagined the slight shiver running through Alec when he almost purred the name and the temptation to just climb this boy like a tree grew even stronger.

“Y—yeah,” was the stuttered reply accompanied by the most beautiful, shy little smile.

Magnus knew he had a tendency to give his heart away too easily and he had been convinced that Camille had taught him better but this gorgeous boy made him forget all about that in the blink of an eye. Ragnor would scold him endlessly as soon as they got back to their camping van, that much was sure.

“Would it be too forward to invite you to dinner? We’re camping not too far from here,” Magnus said the first thing coming to his mind, pointing over his shoulder toward the direction of their camp while his lips curled into a smile that would hopefully make it impossible for Alexander to say no.

“Sorry, we already planned a barbecue this evening,” Alec replied to Magnus’ disappointment but he still smiled back at the young man, nodding slightly.

“That’s a shame,” he sighed and resisted glaring at that blond ogre when he called for Alec once more.

“I’ve got to get back to the others,” the young man muttered with an apologetic smile and Magnus figured that he should accept his defeat. Usually, he’d never give up so easily but despite the flirtiness still coming to him as easily as ever, Camille had successfully robbed him of his usual perseverance. Which was a real shame because Alec seemed like someone who might actually be quite worth the effort.

“Alright, then. Have fun with your friends, Alexander, it was a delight to make your acquaintance.” Magnus smiled but before he was able to walk away, he felt the hesitant touch of warm fingertips brushing against his lower arm. He glanced at the contact that was gone as soon as it had appeared and then looked up at a sheepishly smiling Alexander.

“Maybe...you guys would like to join us for the barbecue later? We have more than enough food,” he offered, long lashes fanning against his pink cheeks as his hazel eyes avoided looking directly at Magnus whose heart stumbled at the endearing sight.

“We’d love to,” Magnus breathed and before he could stop himself, his hand was already reaching up and his knuckles brushed briefly against the heated skin of Alec’s cheek. “I’ll see you later, Alexander.”

The shy smile he got in return went straight through Magnus’ heart and it was impossible to think of this as a mistake, no matter how much Ragnor insisted on it ten minutes later.

Alexander would not be another Camille, he was sure of that.


End file.
